A story about my ripped jeans … and targeting

A few weeks ago I bought myself a nail polish in the color of our car. Yes, I am that crazy, you better believe it.

I wanted to take it a step further as I always do. So I went to the store to buy a Matte Top Coat just to complement the beautiful color of my nails. Found the Top Coat in under 10 minutes (RECORD!) and I was off.

Just as I was leaving the store, there was a man standing in front of it and giving away some pamphlets to everyone. And I mean everyone.

What was going on? And what has this to do with…targeting?

Needless to say, he gave me one too. I checked it out, and it was a pamphlet for a stitching service. For example: if you tear up your pants, they should be the ones you’d call.

What a coincidence that I was wearing these pants when he eagerly approached me and shoved the pamphlet into my already full hands:

(Note the ripped knees on this incredibly blurred image.)

But the one thing that’s NOT a coincidence is — those pamphlets were everywhere. People dropped them on the floor after a few seconds of holding them in hands, trash bins outside and inside the store were full of them.

The company that printed and handed these out would be better off spending this money on … ice cream. Or Matte Top Coats, whatever rocks their boat.

What went so terribly wrong that people felt like throwing these on the ground in front of the very same guy that handed these pamphlets out?

The importance of good targeting

Even though stitching services like this one should address a very specific audience, he handed pamphlets out to everyone.

Young, old, women, men, kids, teenagers, you name it.

I bet you won’t find many teenagers that nowadays buy t-shirts for $10-$15 to take advantage of stitching services since it’s much easier (and probably even cheaper) to go to the store and buy a new one.

Hell, I’m not a teenager, and these ripped pants were in fact quite expensive, and I’m still not interested in his services.

So if you ask me about the #1 thing he did wrong — besides spending money on friggin physical pamphlets that expose your business to a very limited audience — I say TARGETING.

It’s not as easy as pie

Finding your target audience with Facebook Ads is far more challenging than it looks like. There’s no magic wand you could swing. It’s basically a thing of trial and error.

But if you know where to begin with, you could minimize the error part significantly.

Where to start?

First, change your mindset. Don’t be the guy handing out pamphlets to uninterested people, hoping they will show up one day.

Serve your ads to people that really matter.

Quick Basics Lecture

Before we dive in even further, you have to be aware of all the targeting possibilities within Facebook’s Ads Manager:

Take it a step further. Instead of guessing, go to your Google Analytics and check that data yourself.

That’s what you should start with.

Instead of throwing a rock into the void and seeing where it lands, set up a target for yourself and aim.

Want to learn even more?

Well, it’s your lucky day!

“I have no clue who to target with my Facebook Ads” is now a thing of the past. Facebook targeting might sound like a scary thing to tackle, but in reality, you’re closer to your target audience than you think.

Watch the recording of my webinar where you’re going to learn about all the targeting features Facebook offers and also how to use them in your own Facebook Advertising campaigns.

Reaching the perfect audience was never so easy.

Your turn

What’s your #1 struggle you currently have with targeting?

Write me a comment below; I’d love to hear it from you and personally help!